9 Best Coffee Makers of 2023—Tested and Reviewed by Esquire Editors (2024)

I already wrote nearly 1,000 words on why the De’Longhi's Eletta Explore Machine Is Worth Every Penny, but here’s the short version: It gives me cafe-quality drinks in my own kitchen. Look, a lot of people (most of us in this article) say this, but the Eletta Explore goes beyond a regular old cup of Joe or shot of espresso. You can make iced lattes, cappuccinos, and any other specialty drink that comes from coffee beans. Sure, a lot of machines can do this, but these don’t taste like they’ve come from a pod, they taste like they were made by your favorite barista at your favorite local coffee shop.

But there’s one feature that really makes this machine stand out over others: The way it makes iced coffee. The De’Longhi comes with De’Longhi cups, of course, and even a De’Longhi ice cube tray. The cubes are perfectly sized and turn your hot coffee drinks into iced ones. But! It goes one step further, because this machine has two milk frothers, one for hot milk, one for cold milk. Since this can froth milk cold (any type, even plant based), the fluffy milk pours over those perfect ice cubes and doesn’t melt them. The result: The perfect iced coffee. Maybe even better than your usual spot. —Krista Jones, Senior Commerce Editor

I think about coffee makers a lot. Always wondering if there’s a machine or method out there that’s somehow better than the system I’ve employed for however long in my home at that given moment. I’ve got an automatic drip coffee machine, an expensive espresso rig, French presses, stovetop espresso pots—maybe you get it. And if you’re like me—as in, unable to commit—there’s actually finally a machine that’s well-suited to your short attention span. The Philips 3200 lets you have coffee, espresso, cappuccino, and lattes at the press of a button. (Seriously, you press “cappuccino.”) It’s intuitive as hell, and your settings are highly customizable. And the LatteGo milk froth system has to be one of the best frothers I’ve seen. Requiring minimal effort to make and almost none to clean.

A word of caution before I go: Don’t get your hopes up too high for the “iced” option. This thing, while impressive, does not include a refrigeration system, so your drink will still need to be chilled post-brewing. —Madison Vain, Digital Director

First thing I noticed about The Bruvi was it's look. The off-white and wood finish makes it feel so homey. Seeing it in the kitchen would physically lower my heart rate. Making coffee with this thing was my daily detox from harsh stainless steel.

Beyond the look, I was blown away by how much it can do and how intuitive it is. Coffee, espresso, iced, cold brew, Americano, tea, low acidity, big cup, small cup—all with one press of a button on the easy to read screen. That easy! It brews quietly, and it plays a soft little tune when you're done. The best thing, though: This is the most eco-friendly pod machine on the market. The guilt-free pods are made to biodegrade in the landfill. —Luke Guillory, Associate Commerce Editor

I had to talk about the humble Moka Pot. I bought one back in college, and I still use it most days. These things are the backbone of homemade coffee across Italy, and they're one of the best-ever pieces of Italian design. As easy to use as a French press or percolator, but the end result is a richer and smoother psuedo-espresso.

If you're dipping your toe into at-home espresso, this is the starting point. With just a hotplate and handheld milk frother, you can make your own macchiato, latte, cappucino, or cortado. For size and price, nothing will take you farther. —L.G.

But eventually I wanted to upgrade to a proper espresso machine. And I'm not a huge coffee snob (yet!), so for the purpose of this review, I did the pretty machine.

Before this review, I wasn't a fan of SMEG's retro design vibe. I thought the whole "look" was too much, too try hard, annoying, or whatever. Turns out, I was just coping with the fact that I was too broke to afford it.

The second I put this espresso machine on my countertop, I took back everything bad I'd ever said about the SMEG look. It looks so, so, soooo good. The 50s-inspired shape I thought was "too much" is actually just beautiful. The rounded edges and pop of color is the perfect antidote to all the sharp lines in my kitchen. The textured top is the perfect place to store espresso cups and saucers. Plus, the cream color isn't too bold, so it really just blends in.

Oh! And it's the a great simple espresso maker. There's three buttons: Single shot, double shot, and steam. No iced this or pre-made that. I bought a frothing pitcher, and now I can go barista mode and make whatever espresso-plus-milk drink I want. Most importantly: I look good doing it. —L.G.

I developed a Stockholm syndrome situation with cowboy coffee. I told myself I enjoyed the black sludge at the bottom of my camping mug—that it's woven into the culture of America's wild, untamed outdoors. f*ck that, honestly. The only way cowboy coffee is any good is if you're using cardamom-spiced Turkish grounds. In which case, it ceases to be cowboy coffee and just becomes Turkish coffee.

The solution was a backpacking coffee maker. But the world of backpack coffee makers is full of products that were either too complex or too ugly for me. Snow Peak's collapsible stainless steel model was the only one I loved.

First, the price is reasonable. Second, it's light enough (4.9 oz.) and packs down thin enough to be an easy backpacking option. And third, it makes good, consistent coffee. I don't have to fiddle with an AeroPress or clean a French press. It's just hot water over a filter full of grounds. Rinse my cup, toss the filter, fold up the drip, and go. —L.G.

I tested probably the most complex coffee maker on this list. The Spinn is as easy as a pod machine, but it grinds the beans fresh, so you end up with an infinitely better tasting cup of coffee.

This thing can make about 30 unique drinks—cold brew, drip, milk drinks, even the base for an espresso martini. So, the simple interface on the front of the machine was pretty much useless beyond setting it up. I made 99.9 percent of my drinks from the app. Which, unlike any other app-based appliance I've used, was incredibly easy to set up and always reliable.

The app is easy to use, the machine makes a ton of drinks, the bean grinding only takes a few seconds, and refilling the machine is as easy as opening the top and dumping in more beans. (You can actually sign up with Spinn, and auto order beans when your maker is getting low.) Typically, I'd say I don't want all this tech in a coffee machine, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have the time of my life making an espresso while I was still laying in bed. This is the future. —L.G.

We drank a sh*t ton of coffee.

No really, that's it. We love coffee, but we're not nerds. Instead of opting for an overly technical test where we brew the same cup of coffee over-and-over-and-over-and-over, swishing it around in our mouths and writing down tasting notes, we just lived with a bunch of different coffee machines over the course of a few months.

We believed that like a perfect crema atop espresso, the best machines would rise to the top and make themselves known. That's exactly what happened—these nine machines were the ones we literally couldn't give back. These are the coffee machines that currently sit in our kitchens, the ones we preach to our friends and family about. Everything else we tried—everything else on the market—isn't worth it.

But for a list on what influenced our decisions the most, and what you should look for when buying a coffee machine, here it is:

• Looks - First and foremost, this thing is going to live on your kitchen counter. No matter how good the coffee is, if the machine is ugly, you're not going to like it. We test a lot of products, and beauty is always just as important as performance.
• Brew Experience - We say "experience" vs "performance" because the nature of these machines varies so wildly. With an espresso machine or pour over, it's all based on technique—any failure is user error. With a digital machine, it's all about the machine. These that we picked either made a great cup of coffee, or they made it easy for us to make a great cup of coffee.
• Ease of Use - This was our blanket category for two things: How long it took to brew and how easy it was to brew. We love our morning rituals—fresh grinding espresso is such a little joy. But we prefer something that doesn't force us to slow down too much.